2025: albums of the year

This year I added the “stats” page to my personal music player at tessellates, which was not that useful, but did help remind me of some records that I played a lot earlier in the year. Tough to not be “data driven”, once one has the data, but hopefully a balance can be found.

Kate Bush – Hounds Of Love

Well, a bit late to this one (I found a CD case in a free box, which ended up being empty, so I just bought the record, gasp) — but what an amazing record, and what an amazing resource of sounds and power. Maybe next year I won’t have a “classic from the 1980s” on this list?

Lea Bertucci – Hold Music

A winter and spring constant — these two tracks were, as suggested, mostly on background, but were a constant joy of details and subtleness when I dug into them.

Holden & Zimpel – The Universe Will Take Care Of You (plus live from Mutek!)

Very few people like James Holden more than me, but this one was not quite sitting at the peak of perfection for me … until I found this live set from Mutek (argh, why did I not go!), which gives the tracks from the album the life-force they need to really hit liftoff.

Kara-Lis Coverdale – From Where You Came / Changes in Air / A Series of Actions in a Sphere of Forever

A big year for Kara — I think Changes in Air just about sneaks it for me, but all of these albums are heartfelt and deep and thoughtful and calming.

Sweet Honey In The Rock – Sweet Honey In The Rock

This was a dig from what I think was DJ Voices’ last set at Nowadays, and then I got the album, and, shock, a dig from Voices is a really wonderful gospel / soul record.

Young American Primitive – Young American Primitive

I clicked into Bandcamp Daily at the wrong time and got sniped by this. Like all people who grew up on Sasha & Digweed, I knew ‘These Waves’ — the rest of the album is maybe not quite that much of a high point, but it reads like an album, which I increasingly want in my old age, and it is a snapshot of when you could sample the Twilight Zone with a straight face … and, sneaky, most of the tracks are really good.

Xylitol – Anemones

High-energy, high-sugar drum & bass — I think from 2024 but you know the rules around here — this one also ties into the 16-bit video game “pitched percussion” sounds that I’ve been thinking about for at least the last 3 years, as well as general vapourwave “nostalgia”.

Grace Jones – Slave To The Rhythm

Not even really an album — like an EP with all the B-Sides clustered together, some awkward spoken word interludes / interview, a timeless prog house sample on ‘Operattack’, etc. What sells this is that Jones is clearly in on the joke; she knows that this whole thing is a bit of a bit, but she’s there to belt it or dance around it, as needed.

Honorable mentions, the most honorable!

• FKA twigs – EUSEXUA — very hard to keep this off the main list, but I think my nostalgia for this music is not quite right, alas!
• Nídia & Valentina – Estradas, this is just a great record, slightly more legible than some of the Principé magic.
• Jean Bikoko – Ma Cabo Ma Mo — the quest to buy wonderful West African pop records continues.
• Blissi Tebil – Ziglibity – La Continuite; see above.
• gyrofield – Suspension Of Disbelief, a perfect tech/dub/beat EP.
• Felix Hess – Frog Field Recordings — turns out that frogs make basically perfect techno loops.
• Break – Aeoui, a bunch of BIG TUNES that make a surprisingly coherent album listening experience, tm.
• Various Artists – Hypnotised: A Journey Through Trance Music — my youth! (Sort of; some of these records I thought were cheesy when I was 17, and I’m still right).
• Various Artists – Síntesis Moderna – An Alternative Vision Of Argentinean Music — not my youth, but what a shame, this youth seems pretty good.